The BBC2 programme The Conspiracy Files, broadcast yesterday on 30th June, examined the spread of conspiracy theories about the 7/7 bombings, and the arguments contained in the DVD The Ripple Effect.

Dr Mohammed Naseem

The programme included scenes of a meeting held at Birmingham Central Mosque in which Dr Mohammed Naseem argued that “The Ripple Effect is more convincing than the government statement”.

Respect party leader and Birmingham City councillor Salma Yaqoob rejects these conspiracy theories:

“We do not need conspiracy theories to understand the 7/7 bombings. Two of the bombers left video messages explaining exactly why they carried out this terrible atrocity. The government may be in denial about the fact that its war in Iraq encouraged terrorism at home. But we have to face facts.

“Four young men, angry at our government’s foreign policy in Iraq and Afghanistan, lost any sense of humanity and inflicted terrible suffering on innocent people. We have to confront and challenge those who justify and encourage these crimes, and we have to put an end to the injustice caused by our foreign policy that creates such a well of bitterness and hatred.

“There is a growing tendency throughout the world for many people to doubt anything that they are told by official sources. Trust in political institutions has been eroded and few people believe that those in power are honest and truthful. Many Muslims feel that almost everything they read about themselves in the media is false or hostile. And we know that the government lied about something as serious as the reasons for going to war in Iraq. This is fertile ground for the growth of conspiracy theories.

“An open and public enquiry into the Iraq war, that does not seek to protect the reputations of those who led us into this disastrous conflict, might go some way towards undermining these conspiracy theories and focussing attention on the real issues.”